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Birmingham buses

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9 JML in original green/cream livery on hire to East Yorkshire Motor Services in April 1957.
As the bus came to Birmingham in February 1957 and was on hire, it seems it had a trial in Yorkshire returning to Birmingham fairly soon afterwards and then painted into a style of BCT livery.
Its history with BCT is recorded in this thread.
 
BHF has a very large input relating to public houses in the city.
It crossed my mind that some bus routes and their destination blinds referred too one or two of these pubs.
Often seen was Fox and Goose Washwood Heath. Ivy Bush was another as was New Inns.
There were other routes that did not specifically mention a pub but a terminus adjacent to a pub which took the roads name.
The Baldwin (Baldwins Lane, The Maypole and Arden Oak and Fox Hollies Road (Fox Hollies, Hall green).
I guess there are more that others can recall.
However the Pub or road name had to appear on the buses destination blind for authentic inclusion here. ;)
 
Before the E suffix became a general designation for short workings, a series of letters were used working outwards from the city centre so 9C was Ivy Bush and 9E was Holly Bush both of which appeared on destination blinds. For a time the Holly Bush was renamed Jeffersons (I don't think landmark pubs should ever change their names) and Jeffersons did appear on destination blinds in spite of there being other pubs in the Jefferson chain in the Birmingham area.

I have seen 11E Kings Head on Outer Circle buses

Because historically Quinton stretches across the city boundary in to the metropolitan boroughs of both Sandwell and Dudley, the name Quinton now seems to be restricted only to those parts which lie in the city following a boundary change in 1909. To me the Stag and Three Horseshoes, Halesowen, has always been the 'Stag at Quinton' especially as I now live behind that pub. Now only NEx WM uses that in its timetables and I have seen 'Quinton Stag' as a destination on buses on what is now the 19 (previously 241 and before that the 99). The Midland Red had an occasional bus from Smethwick to Quinton Stag, I think it just ran early on Sunday mornings for the benefit of anglers wanting buses out to places on the River Severn.

Somewhere on the Forum, possibly on this thread, someone posted a photo, probably from about 1980 of a bus on Broad Street showing 122 Birmingham via Londonderry, an unlikely route! The Londonderry Inn used to be a pub in West Smethwick.

Years ago the Midland Red had a bus route to somewhere called Manchester Inn. I think I did find out where that was once, somewhere out in the country. That was the destination because the only place the bus could turn round was on the pub car park.
 
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Try the Manchester Inn, Romsley - it googles sadly under closedpubs.co.uk - it did have a large car park and a turning area opposite.......
 
David's post about pub car park terminals reminded me of the very famous one, which many Brummies would have known and that was The Red Lion at Stratford upon Avon - although the buses (B&MMO and Stratford Blue) I am certain never used it on their blinds. It was interesting to note the E changes mentioned which were PTE days. I never knew, or had much interest, in the PTE.
The sheer volume of pubs - all over the UK - meant many bus stops were situated at or near them. In the fishing port of Brixham, Devon back in 1924 the landlord, a Mr. Geddes. of the Burton Hotel (basically a pub), started up a bus company. It became known as Burton Cars and survived until swallowed up by Devon General after the de-regulation.
PS: The Burton pub is still going strongly.
 
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A few years ago they had a bus from each garage painted in the old corporation colours as applicable BCT, Walsall, Wolverhampton, West Bromwich and Coventry. Perhaps they are planning to do the same again
 
Hi all,
Although a 'Blue & Cream' nut I was (in the distant past) a Midland Red driver. My initial 'punishment' after passing my PSV in 1957 was being put on the "track" - this being the 201 Smethwick? to Worlds End. I am trying to recall whether the numerous islands numbered something like 18 in a very short distance. All I do (vividly) remember was the arm-aching pain of the non power steering D5's. It always seemed daft to me, being based at Digbeth, that we had to share this route with Bearwood. Can all you fountains of knowledge help with this 'memory loss' . . . .
 
Hi Nigel, to refresh your memory,

201 Smethwick (Blue Gates), High Street, O, Cheshire Road, O, Stanhope Road, O, Norman Road, O, Norman Road, O, Clent Road, Albert Road, Stanley Road, O, Clive Road, O, Worlds End Lane, O, Worlds End Lane, O, Faraday Avenue. O (the return to the Blue Gates required a trip round the block to turn round)
Edit. I missed out a roundabout so now corrected
I have marked the roundabouts with an O. Not all of them were true roundabouts but they were junctions which required a bit of a weave. Main roads to cross where Wolverhampton Road (a slightly staggered junction) and Hagley Road West (a dual carriageway which I have classed as a roundabout as you had to do a left, right, left.

The 201 was an odd route as it crossed the Birmingham City Boundary so Clive Road onwards the bus stops changed shape to the Birmingham round style but with Midland Red flags.

Associated with the 201 was the 203 Smethwick to Brandhall Estate which turned right at Wolverhampton Road then left into Bleakhouse Road to the Brandhall Estate. I think this was to a terminus that required the conductor to use his whistle as there was a reverse round a corner.

The 200 was a short working from Smethwick to the Norman Road Pottery Road junction. How those buses turned round changed every time the junction changed.

I am surprised that Digbeth operated on this route as I would have assumed that it would have been a wholly Bearwood Garage operation

Perhaps I should explain. My grandparents lived on this route. Also I worked for a time in Smethwick and used this route every day.
 
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DavidGrain said:
Hi Nigel, to refresh your memory,

201 Smethwick (Blue Gates), High Street, O, Cheshire Road, O, Stanhope Road, O, Norman Road, O, Norman Road, O, Clent Road, Albert Road, Stanley Road, O, Clive Road, O, Worlds End Lane, O, Worlds End Lane, O, Faraday Avenue. O (the return to the Blue Gates required a trip round the block to turn round)
Edit. I missed out a roundabout so now corrected
I have marked the roundabouts with an O. Not all of them were true roundabouts but they were junctions which required a bit of a weave. Main roads to cross where Wolverhampton Road (a slightly staggered junction) and Hagley Road West (a dual carriageway which I have classed as a roundabout as you had to do a left, right, left.

The 201 was an odd route as it crossed the Birmingham City Boundary so Clive Road onwards the bus stops changed shape to the Birmingham round style but with Midland Red flags.

Associated with the 201 was the 203 Smethwick to Brandhall Estate which turned right at Wolverhampton Road then left into Bleakhouse Road to the Brandhall Estate. I think this was to a terminus that required the conductor to use his whistle as there was a reverse round a corner.

The 200 was a short working from Smethwick to the Norman Road Pottery Road junction. How those buses turned round changed every time the junction changed.

I am surprised that Digbeth operated on this route as I would have assumed that it would have been a wholly Bearwood Garage operation

Perhaps I should explain. My grandparents lived on this route. Also I worked for a time in Smethwick and used this route every day.
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David, Star man . . . You bought back the route so well, all I actually remembered was crossing the Wolverhampton Road! When I was first 'allocated' this turn I remember thinking "this is a wind up, there can't be a place called 'Worlds End'"
I grew to dread this turn and after about 6 weeks returned to my (then) home turf - south of Birmingham.
Many thanks again for your detailed knowledge, seems I was a bit over the top with 18, 'only' 10 was bad enough !!
Regards.
 
I always thought that the Wolverhampton Corporation bus livery was about as miserable looking as it could get.
I first encountered their buses on route 17 from Bridgnorth when first in the RAF. RAF Hednesford also saw them.
 
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mw0njm. said:
thanks alan i drove the d/deckers but never one of them
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I take it that it was the JOJ ones rather than the HOV ones.
As far as the PS2 saloons were concerned then I have to say they were pleasant to ride in. From time to time, during school holidays, I boarded one in Kings Heath (having got there on the 11 and either 29a/37/or a Stratford Road Midland Red before hand). My journey on the 27 took me to Stirchley, near the Royal Oak.
 
If you want to see a modern NXWM bus in old Birmingham City Transport colours, I saw one in the rain in Acocks Green!

It was on the 1A (I think), but when I took this on my smartphone it was going back to the garage!

4651

 
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A long shot, but here goes. Late 50's, i had a great schoolpal who was CRAZY about buses, and maybe some enthusiast on this forum knows him?
John Seale.
He lived in the maisonettes nr chester rd just nr the M6 exit rd now.
We lost touch some 55or more years ago but i was always convinced he would be involved with buses in one way or another.
Any info would be great.
 
Johnbell said:
A long shot, but here goes. Late 50's, i had a great schoolpal who was CRAZY about buses, and maybe some enthusiast on this forum knows him?
John Seale.
He lived in the maisonettes nr chester rd just nr the M6 exit rd now.
We lost touch some 55or more years ago but i was always convinced he would be involved with buses in one way or another.
Any info would be great.
Click to expand...
carolina said:
If this is him, then he is on facebook. View attachment 134170
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That's the man! Many thanks
 
Radiorails said:
I take it that it was the JOJ ones rather than the HOV ones.
As far as the PS2 saloons were concerned then I have to say they were pleasant to ride in. From time to time, during school holidays, I boarded one in Kings Heath (having got there on the 11 and either 29a/37/or a Stratford Road Midland Red before hand). My journey on the 27 took me to Stirchley, near the Royal Oak.
Click to expand...

The single deck Leyland Tigers where lively motors, though in my 12 years at Selly Oak i never heard them referred to as Tigers,. The 4 Leyland Olympics at Selly Oak where often nicknamed Geeps/Jeeps.
The low bridge at Cadburys necessitated the use of single deckers on the 27 route.
 
Johnbell said:
That's the man! Many thanks
Click to expand...

I know John very well, he & I started a preservation society that has now become Wythall Transport museum. He has been in the bus design business almost all of his working life, lives in Doncaster and has recently retired from 'way up the tree' at bus builder Optare.

JAS at Optare.jpg
 
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